The Beatles' penchant for rock is baked right into their winkingly rhythmic name. Still, they were already unplugging for rootsy acoustic songs while Beatlemania was still raging in 1964.

John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison would continue exploring these quieter creative spaces throughout their time together in the Beatles – and beyond. The following list of top 20 acoustic Beatles songs spans the gamut from Hard Day's Night and Rubber Soul through the White Album and Let It Be.

As their imaginations took flight, the Beatles wound up combining acoustic elements with influences ranging from classical flourishes to exotic world music. We stayed away from songs that weren't strictly acoustic like "Here Comes the Sun" from Abbey Road, the White Album's "Mother Nature's Son" and "Across the Universe" in both of its released forms.

What are the Top Acoustic Beatles Songs?

"Here Comes the Sun" certainly starts off as an acoustic Beatles song, before Harrison adds a turn on an embryonic synth and producer George Martin surrounds it all with violas, cellos, flutes and clarinets. The Beatles similarly embellished "Mother Nature's Son" and "Across the Universe." "Yesterday," on the other hand, gets a pass because it's all strings.

READ MORE: 20 Beatles Songs That John Lennon Hated

We also limited our rankings to original songs and complete takes. So, despite Harrison's deft acoustic turn, "Til There Was You" from With The Beatles was left off because it's actually a cover from the stage production of The Music Man. "Anna (Got to Him)" from Please Please Me was also a cover song, written by Arthur Alexander.

Don't bother looking for throwaway snippets like "Her Majesty" from Abbey Road and "Maggie May" from Let It Be, though other songs from those LPs made the cut. Our countdown of top 20 acoustic Beatles songs also includes favorites from Beatles for Sale, Help!, Revolver and various stand-alone singles.

No. 20. "Michelle"

From: Rubber Soul (1965)

This finger-picking Chet Atkins-influenced song was one of the first ever written by Paul McCartney, who originally played it upside down on his first guitar since it wasn't left-handed. McCartney had been pretending to speak French to pick up girls at parties since his school days. Same thing here. That is, until the wife of a friend of John Lennon's who actually worked as a French instructor helped McCartney with the lyric.

No. 19. "Long, Long, Long"

From: White Album (1968)

Sparked by Bob Dylan's "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands," George Harrison created a quietly involving musical dreamscape. The rest, however, is a mystery: Is he in love with some girl? Has he found God? Why won't he speak up? It's easy to imagine the Beatles placing this song between "Helter Skelter" and "Revolution 1" to provide a moment of calm. But then Ringo Starr's eruptive fills shake us all awake.

No. 18. "Yes It Is"

From: B-side (1965)

John Lennon's anguished cries give away more than this simple ballad ever could. There's a depthless darkness in his voice. Still, "Yes It Is" gets docked several spots because it's basically a rewrite of "This Boy," a track with the same 12/8 time signature found later in our list of Top 20 Acoustic Beatles Songs. Harrison also happily explores a new volume-pedal guitar effect that he'll put to even better use on "I Need You."

No. 17. "I'll Follow the Sun"

From: Beatles for Sale (1964)

Turns out, he'd be following for almost four and a half years. McCartney began sketching out this song as early as 1958. Actual bootleg recordings with the Quarrymen, Lennon's pre-Beatles group, date back to April 1960. But "I'll Follow the Sun" wouldn't be released until they started desperately casting about for material to complete an album amid the flurry of activity surrounding Beatlemania.